Chapter 65: Reincarnation! (2)

After extinguishing his cigarette, Qian Mo slowly stood up and surveyed his surroundings. The breeze stirred his hair, while the white robe at his feet fluttered as if caught in invisible threads.

The commotion in the main hall had drawn many members of the Wolfhead Mercenary Corps—some coming for the spectacle, others to intimidate. They thought themselves impressive, but in Qian Mo’s eyes they were nothing more than a band of clowns, utterly ignorant of the ways of the world.

“Hey, kid, where did you take our captain?”
“Yeah, where is he?”
“Let our captain go!”
“You wrecked this place, you’d better pay for it!”
“That’s right, compensation—pay up!”
“Return the captain! Pay up!”
The chorus of protests grew, but suddenly a commanding voice cut through the noise, and the crowd fell silent.

“It’s the vice-captain,” ran the collective thought.

“So, the sly-looking one up front must be their second-in-command, or at least someone with considerable influence,” Qian Mo mused with interest as the rabble quieted at the newcomer’s word.

“Listen up, kid! If you don’t give us an explanation today, you won’t take a single step out of here. Even if you do, we’ll hunt you to the ends of the earth,” the man said, swaggering forward and pointing at Qian Mo.

“Yeah, that’s right!” the others echoed.

Qian Mo couldn’t help but laugh at this. “You want an explanation? No problem,” he replied with a smile.

Had Wolfhead himself witnessed this smile, he would have ordered his men to run for their lives. Unfortunately, this band of fools had no idea—instead, they were elated, thinking they had won.

“Looks like this fellow is actually pretty reasonable. He must be scared of our numbers to treat us so politely. Time to see how much I can squeeze out of him,” the man thought to himself, wearing a smug smile.

“Are these Wolfhead guys truly idiots? They believe this? Never mind, I can’t be bothered to deal with them any longer. Time to send them on their way to the cycle of reincarnation,” Qian Mo thought with mild surprise.

“Tell me, have you ever heard of reincarnation?” Qian Mo asked softly.

“Reincarnation? What’s that?” The crowd looked baffled, question marks practically floating above their heads.

“Could it be… our captain’s disappearance is related to this reincarnation thing?” the man inquired.

“These people really are dim-witted,” Qian Mo thought, amused, though he maintained a stern expression. “That’s right. Your captain’s disappearance has everything to do with reincarnation.”

“Kid, if you tell us where reincarnation is, we’ll let you walk out of here,” the man promised.

“Reincarnation, eh? That takes us back fifteen years, when I first met your captain, Wolfhead. Back then, he was so poor he owned nothing but a pair of underwear, scrounging for food under a bridge. One day, starving to the brink of death, he tried to rob a woman on her way to visit her family. He crossed the wrong people and ended up beaten, barely clinging to life. Maybe fate intervened, for I happened to pass by and saw him—pitiful, shivering in his tattered underwear, the rest of him exposed to the elements. When he saw me, Wolfhead dropped to his knees, begging me for help, for a bite to eat. My heart couldn’t bear the sight! I gave him a blue winter robe to wear; it was a chilly season with drizzle in the air. I found him shelter and a hot meal, and later took him in to work for me. However…”

“What happened? Go on!”
“The captain was that miserable?”
“Yeah, I used to have a falling out with him—now I feel so guilty…”
The crowd broke into discussion.

“Quiet, all of you! Let the gentleman finish!” the leader barked, voice trembling, and his eyes suspiciously red.

Trust these fools to ruin the mood. It’s rare enough for a man like me to shed a tear—do you know how hard that is?

“I never thought a story I made up on the spot would have such an impact,” Qian Mo thought as he watched them weep and wail.

He took another drag of his cigarette and continued, “But Wolfhead was always a wolf with dreams. Eventually, he struck out on his own, and that’s how your Wolfhead Mercenary Corps came about. Before he left, he asked me to send him into reincarnation, so he could train and grow stronger to protect you all. You see—”

“No need to explain further, sir, please send me into reincarnation as well! We can’t let our captain bear this burden alone! Brothers, don’t you agree?” the man interrupted, shouting with fervor.

“Yes! We want to reincarnate with the captain!”
“Please, sir, grant us this!”
The crowd chanted in waves.

The man, moved by his brothers’ spirit, turned to Qian Mo with deep respect. “Please, sir, grant us our wish!”

“Haha! Incredible. I really do live in a different world from these people… Never seen anyone so cheerful at the prospect of death,” Qian Mo thought, pursing his lips in disbelief.

Outwardly, he furrowed his brow in feigned contemplation. The crowd watched him in anticipation, not daring to interrupt—what if they missed their chance at reincarnation?

After a moment, Qian Mo spoke solemnly, “Wolfhead is truly blessed to have brothers like you. Since your sincerity moves me, I’ll make the effort to send you to reincarnation to join him.”

“Thank you, elder!” they cried in gratitude, bowing with clasped fists.

“All right, stand in line! I’m about to begin,” Qian Mo said quietly.

The nervous men quickly arranged themselves, awaiting Qian Mo’s next move.

“Mama-mama, Mo-Mo-la-la-la… la-ji la-ji… lock, lock, reincarnation open!” Qian Mo intoned softly. The crowd, hearing this, was left utterly bewildered.

With a wave of his hand, a beam of light appeared before them.

“What is that?” they wondered aloud.

“One, two, three—farewell, gentlemen! Off to reincarnation you go!” As Qian Mo finished speaking, the white light enveloped them all.

“I’m such a good person! So many people lining up for me to send them to their deaths,” Qian Mo said with a smile as he watched them vanish.

“Well, time to see if there’s anything valuable left around here. System, convert everything of value,” Qian Mo commanded.

“Ding! Conversion in progress… Congratulations, host. You have earned a total of 1.5 million World Tokens.”

“Seriously? That little? Only one and a half million… Well, they were just extras, nothing worth much here anyway. Better to seek out richer marks,” Qian Mo said with a faint look of disdain.

(End of this chapter)